DAP national chairman Tan Kok Wai announced the swap during a party event at Foh Sang, Luyang here today.

This will see Chan, who is the Sabah DAP secretary, making his maiden contest for a parliamentary seat while Wong, who is the Sabah DAP adviser, will return to his Sri Tanjong hometown seat which he won in the 2008 general election.

Sri Tanjong is within the Tawau parliamentary constituency.

In the 2013 general election, Chan secured Sri Tanjong with a 5,927-vote majority over closest contender Fung Len Fui of Barisan Nasional (BN).

Wong notched the Kota Kinabalu seat with a massive majority as well in the last polls, garnering 28,516 votes and defeating closest rival, BN’s Chin Tek Ming who garnered 9,557 votes.

Tan also announced the candidates for two state seats within Kota Kinabalu, with newcomers Phoong Jin Zhe named as the candidate for Luyang and Tan Lee Fatt for Likas.

Tan’s candidacy also means incumbent Junz Wong will not defend his Likas seat, in line with the electoral understanding between Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) and Sabah Pakatan Harapan (PH) of not contesting against each other in GE14.

Junz won the seat as a DAP candidate in 2013, but left the party to join Warisan in 2016. He is now a Warisan vice-president.

He is rumoured to be eyeing the Tanjong Kapor state seat in the Kudat parliamentary constituency although Warisan sources have said he will likely be named as the candidate for Tanjong Aru, a state seat within the Putatan federal seat.

Meanwhile, it was also reported previously that Sabah PKR chairperson Christina Liew will defend the Api-Api seat, which is the remaining state seat in Kota Kinabalu.

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